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by Prip 18-year-old Daja Bedanova continues to impress, playing a fantastic match against Elena Dementieva of Russia. Starting the match very tentatively, the Czech girl let Elena take control of the match, and really didn't factor at all in the first set. Elena got a high percentage of her first serves in, and that made all the difference in the world. The Russian lost only 1 point on her first serve in the entire first set, and it looked like Daja stood no chance against the Russian's firepower. The second set was totally different, with Daja playing more like she had nothing to lose. No longer merely keeping the ball in play, the youngster started hitting some winners of her own, and was moving Elena around the court more. Doing well to open up the court and getting shorter angles on her shots, Daja found herself up a break and serving for the set at 6-5. That's when the sudden realization that she was there on Stadium Court, playing in a night match against the number 9 seed set in again. The game went to 8 deuces and Daja held set point a total of 5 times, but couldn't break through, and double-faulted to give Dementieva the final advantage before hitting an unforced error to bring the second set into a tie-breaker. This was certainly a situation the youngster didn't want to be in. Elena served ahead, and got the first point. Sure enough, Elena got the break of serve, and Daniela found herself down 2-4 and perched precariously on a straight set defeat. Instead of balling up, she hit out, and Elena found herself practically standing and looking at winners land beyond her reach. Daja evened the tie-breaker up at 5-all, and fought hard for the next two points to bring the match to 1 set apiece. Feeling her confidence surging, the Czech girl managed to stay focused and not let herself fall into a slump after the excitement of the second set. Looking focused and concentrated during the changeover, Daja simply took the fact that she had a chance at this match as nothing extraordinary. She maintained her level of play, and managed to cut down on her unforced errors considerably. The main factor that decided the match in the end was the first serve percentages. Elena only got about half her first serves in, while Daja did a little better, and the serve proved crucial in deciding the points. With Daja serving ahead, she got the break to go up 5-3, and this time, didn't tighten up. On the other hand, Elena uncharacteristically got tense, and could only watch as an ace went past her to seal the deal. As if the defeat on center court against such a rookie wasn't a blow enough to the proud Russian, Elena Dementieva would later show up to her press conference only to find an empty media room. Daja had shown up immediately after her match, glowing with pride, and had gotten it over and done with well before the next match had started. Unfortunately for Elena, nearly every single member of the media had turned to watch Carlos Moya take on Lleyton Hewitt, and had either forgotten or not bothered to query the Russian. Hopefully she will be able to walk away from this whole ordeal with her self-belief intact, and continue with the success she has had thus far. |